Painted Pretty ♡

twenty-seven ♡

Alright, maybe Lindsay was going through some stuff. And yeah, I started feeling a twinge of sympathy for her, dealing with the fallout. But let's be real, she kind of brought this mess upon herself. So why wasn't I still fuming? Was I seriously extending a hand to help her out? Ugh, I must've lost my mind.

"I'll put out a statement on the app, telling people to cut the crap with the death threats and bullying. It's not cool, and I can't even imagine how awful it must be for you," I say, keeping a straight face. Man, guilt was starting to settle in.

Lindsay's face lights up, and she's grinning like she just won the lottery. Seriously, did she think I'd come to her rescue after all the drama? "I really just want to end this nonsense. Those guys are making us tear each other apart."

"Blaming them won't solve anything. Let's call it what it is – we both messed up. I did my thing to you, and you did your thing to me. We're square now. Let's just survive the rest of senior year," I mutter, taking a sip of my drink.

But then, Lindsay's expression shifts to concern, and her lips form a worried line. "What's your plan with Andre?" she asks.

I let out a sigh. "I told him I'd go to the dance with him." Okay, now I'm seriously questioning my judgment. Why did I say yes so easily? Nabbing a guy, especially now with all this attention, feels way too simple. I wanted to believe Andre was different from the rest of the dudes I've dealt with. I wanted to believe there was something real between us, a connection on every level. Lindsay notices me drifting off, so she decides to yank me back.

"You did what? Seriously, he's just trying to ride your popularity wave. You know that, right?" Lindsay took my silence as me agreeing with her. "We can't let him get away for doing what he did to you, he probably thinks he has you all in the bag now." Lindsay crossed her arms.

"I know, I just don't want to deal with any more drama, you know? I mean, I already said yes to him. Maybe I can come up with some excuse to not be stuck by his side the whole night."

"Alright, listen up, here's the game plan," Lindsay said, leaning in with a glint in her eye. "I'll make sure to keep you occupied during the dance. We'll dance, chat, maybe even pull you into a bunch of different conversations. That way, you won't be left alone with him for too long. He'll get the hint that you're not exactly feeling it, and any feelings or intentions he's got will naturally get messed up by the time the night's over."

I scrunched my nose, mulling it over. It did sound solid, and less awkward than my original plan to just ghost out on being his date. At least Lindsay's approach had a touch of finesse, something I never thought she'd possess. "Well, I'll be damned. I didn't think you had it in you."

Lindsay smirked, raising her coffee cup to her lips. "Oh, you have no idea. I'm full of surprises." And then we burst out laughing, because honestly, this plan was golden. It felt good to have someone else taking the reins for once, especially since all my own plans tended to crumble to pieces.

Once I stepped through my front door, I was determined to keep my word and let the digital realm know it was time to back off bullying Lindsay. I fired up the app, set up my ring light for that picture-perfect glow, and gave my hair a quick fluff – got to look decent, right? With a deep breath, I hit record. Easy peasy.

Thanking everyone for their unwavering support and all the kind words about me being true to myself, I acknowledged that living my life wasn't exactly a walk in the park. We needed more trans voices raising hell in this world. Because let's face it, cis people had no clue what we trans folks faced day in and day out. I admitted that what I did to Lindsay was way off base, a twisted way I coped with coming to grips with my own truth.